April 12, 2010

Tater Tot Casserole


2lb Hamburger
1/2c. chopped onion
Salt,Pepper, Garlic
Cream of Mushroom Soup, 2small or 1 Lg Family size
Slash of Milk (just so its not to thick but not soupy either)
1 envelope Onion Soup mix
2 cans Green Beans, drained
Tater Tots (or in a pinch Instant Mashed Potatoes)
Grated Cheese

Brown hamburger, drain excess grease, add onion and spices, cook until onion is clear and tender. Mix in soup, onion soup mix and green beans. Spoon into a large baking dish. Arrange tater tots (or mashed potatoes) evenly on top of hamburger mixture. Bake at 350 for about 45mins to an hour until tater tots are cooked, then sprinkle with grated cheese and return to oven to melt, then serve. If using mashed potatoes I just heat in oven until all ingredients are warmed through and bubbly (maybe 20mins)then add cheese.

This is a typical casserole but my kids LOVE it!

Best Broccoli


2-3 Large bunches of Broccoli
2 TB Butter
Drizzle of Olive Oil
2 TB minced Garlic (I buy a lg bottle in grocers section at Walmart)
1/2 c. hot water
1 TB chicken bouillon powder

Cut into florets, I like to leave the stems long. Melt butter in olive oil then saute garlic a little before adding in the broccoli, stir and saute broccoli. Then dissolve chicken bouillon in water and add to hot pan. cover and let steam until broccoli is tender.

I LOVE the broccoli from Carraba's Italian Grill and decided to try it myself. Now I can't make broccoli any other way!!!! Try it you'll love it. You can adjust the amount of garlic and bouillon for your taste. At Carraba's they add a little chopped red bell pepper, but I don't usually have that on hand.

Cheesy Au Gratin Potatos


15-20 small russet potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
2 cans Cream of Chicken soup or 1 Lg family size can
1c. milk
2 Lg handfuls of grated cheese( I buy a big bag from costco)
1/2c. sliced onion
Salt, Pepper, Garlic

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Pour mixture into a 9x13 baking dish, cover tight with foil. I bake this at 350 for about 1.5 hrs or until tender.

This is a family favorite so much so that I don't even have the recipe written down anywhere. It is easy to eyeball the amounts as well you can't get it wrong! This goes great with a lot of dishes! Sometimes I will bake this at the same time I am baking meatloaf 275 for three hours while we are at church and when we get home, it's perfect!!! Delicious!

Sunday Meatloaf


2.5 lb Hamburger
1 loaf of white bread, wet and squeeze out excess water.
3 eggs
1 envelope Onion soup mix
a handful of Oats
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Worcestershire Sauce, douse generously
2/3c. Milk
Topping:
Ketchup or BBQ Sauce

In a large bowl combine all ingredients and smoosh together. Do not over mix, I like to leave the bread so that chunks are still visible. form loaf meat mixture in a 9x13 pan or fill one to sides a little smaller, mine measures 7x10. Pat the meat so top is smoothed. Spread a layer of either Ketchup or BBQ over the top. I Bake this in the oven at 275 for three hours while we are at church and when we get home it is perfect.

With this I usually bake a pan of cheesy au gratin potatoes (for the same amount of time at the same temp)and then when we get home all I have to do is warm up a vegetable and maybe slice up some french bread.